Baseline and post-stress seasonal changes in immunocompetence and redox state maintenance in the fishing bat Myotis vivesi

PLoS One. 2018 Jan 2;13(1):e0190047. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0190047. eCollection 2018.

Abstract

Little is known of how the stress response varies when animals confront seasonal life-history processes. Antioxidant defenses and damage caused by oxidative stress and their link with immunocompetence are powerful biomarkers to assess animal´s physiological stress response. The aim of this study was A) to determine redox state and variation in basal (pre-acute stress) immune function during summer, autumn and winter (spring was not assessed due to restrictions in collecting permit) in the fish-eating Myotis (Myotis vivesi; Chiroptera), and B) to determine the effect of acute stress on immunocompetence and redox state during each season. Acute stress was stimulated by restricting animal movement for 6 and 12 h. The magnitude of the cellular immune response was higher during winter whilst that of the humoral response was at its highest during summer. Humoral response increased after 6 h of movement restriction stress and returned to baseline levels after 12 h. Basal redox state was maintained throughout the year, with no significant changes in protein damage, and antioxidant activity was modulated mainly in relation to variation to environment cues, increasing during high temperatures and decreasing during windy nights. Antioxidant activity increased after the 6 h of stressful stimuli especially during summer and autumn, and to a lesser extent in early winter, but redox state did not vary. However, protein damage increased after 12 h of stress during summer. Prolonged stress when the bat is engaged in activities of high energy demand overcame its capacity to maintain homeostasis resulting in oxidative damage.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antibody Formation
  • Chiroptera / immunology
  • Chiroptera / physiology*
  • Immunocompetence*
  • Oxidation-Reduction
  • Oxidative Stress
  • Principal Component Analysis
  • Seasons*
  • Stress, Physiological*
  • Weather

Grants and funding

This work was supported by a grant (# 23774) given by Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACyT) to LGHM, partially supported by CONACyT Fronteras en la Ciencia grant FON.INST/298/2016 to MKF. UHA acknowledges the scholarship provided by CONACyT. Alejandra Ibáñez-Contreras is employed by Unidad de Experimentación Animal, Biología Integral para Vertebrados (BIOINVERT®). Unidad de Experimentación Animal, Biología Integral para Vertebrados (BIOINVERT®) provided support in the form of salary for author AI-C, but did not have any additional role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. The specific role of this author is articulated in the ‘author contributions’ section.